Seasonal Charts: South
ATLAS OF THE UNIVERSE
GEMINI
AURIGA
PERSEUS LYNXMAJORURSALEOMINOR
CAMELOPARDALISANDROMEDA CASSIOPEIATRIANGULUMPEGASUSARIESTAURUSPISCESCETUS
CETUSERIDANUSERIDANUSCANIS MAJOR CANIS MAJOR
MONOCEROSCANISMINORCANCERHYDRAHYDRA
SEXTANSLEOANTLIAPYXISCRATERCORVUSVELAPUPPISCARINADORADOCAELUMCHAMAELEONMENSAPICTOR
RETICULUMHOROLOGIUMHYDRUS
TUCANAPHOENIXGRUSSCULPTORPISCIS AUSTRINUS
AQUARIUS
INDUSVOLANSCRUX MUSCACENTAURUSTRIANGULUMAUSTRALECIRCINUS
LUPUS ARAPAVOAPUSOCTANSCOLUMBAFORNAXLEPUS
LEPUSORIONNORTH SOUTHW E W
5 oS15 oS25 oS35 oS35 oS25 oS15 oS5 oSCapellaCastorPollux
RegulusProcyonSirius
AdharaFomalhautMimosa
Acrux
Hadar
Rigil KentSiriusBetelgeuseAldebaran
MiraCanopusAchernarRigelECLIPTIC PleiadesNORTH SOUTHW E W
5 oS15 oS25 oS35 oS35 oS25 oS15 oS5 oSGEMINIAURIGALYNX URSA MAJORLEO MINORCAMELOPARDALIS
TAURUSERIDANUSERIDANUSCANIS MAJORMONOCEROSCANISMINOR CANCERHYDRAHYDRASEXTANSBOREALISCORONABOÖTESCOMA BERENICESCANES VENATICIVIRGOSERPENSCAPUTLEODRACOANTLIACRATER CRATER PYXISCORVUSLIBRASCORPIUS
OPHIUCHUS
TELESCOPIUMNORMAVELA PUPPISCARINADORADO
CHAMAELEON CAELUM
MENSAPICTORRETICULUM
HYDRUS HOROLOGIUMINDUS TUCANAPHOENIXVOLANS
MUSCACENTAURUS CRUXTRIANGULUMAUSTRALELUPUS CIRCINUSARA PAVOOCTANSAPUSCOLUMBAFORNAXLEPUSORIONORIONCapellaCastorPolluxRegulus SpicaArcturusProcyon Adhara SiriusMimosaAcrux
Hadar
RigilKentAntaresBetelgeuseAldebaranCanopusAchernarRigel
RigelECLIPTICECLIPTICCORONA AUSTRALISSERPENSCAUDANORTH SOUTHW E W
5 oS15 oS25 oS35 oS35 oS25 oS15 oS5 oSLYNX
URSA MINORURSA MAJORHERCULESAQUILASCUTUMCYGNUSLYRAVULPECULA
SAGITTAMINORLEOMAJORCANISCANCER MONOCEROSHYDRAHYDRASEXTANS HYDRA
BOREALISCORONABOÖTESBERENICESCOMACANES VENATICIVIRGOSERPENSCAPUTSERPENSCAUDALEODRACOANTLIAPYXISCRATER CORVUSCRATERCORVUSLIBRALIBRASCORPIUSOPHIUCHUS
OPHIUCHUSSAGITTARIUSTELESCOPIUMCAPRICORNUS MICROSCOPIUM
GRUSNORMAVELACARINA PUPPISDORADOCHAMAELEONMENSA
PICTOR
RETICULUMHOROLOGIUMHYDRUS
TUCANAPHOENIXINDUSVOLANSMUSCACRUXCENTAURUSTRIANGULUMAUSTRALECIRCINUSLUPUSARAPAVO OCTANSAPUSCOLUMBARegulusSpicaArcturusVega
Altair
AdharaMimosa
AcruxRigil Kent HadarAntaresCanopus
AchernarECLIPTICECLIPTICG
enerally, the stars in the South Polar area of the sky
are brighter than those of the far north, even though the
actual Pole lies in a barren region, and there is no
pattern of stars so distinctive as the Great Bear – apart
from the Southern Cross, which covers a much smaller
area. Canopus, the brightest star in the sky apart from
Sirius, has a declination of some 53 degrees, and is not
visible from Europe, but rises well above the horizon from
Mexico, and from Australia and New Zealand it is visible
for much of the year. In the far south, too, there are
the Clouds of Magellan. They are prominent naked-eye
objects, and the Large Cloud can be seen without optical
aid even under conditions of full moonlight.
An observer at one of the Earth’s poles would see one
hemisphere of the sky only, and all the visible stars would
be circumpolar. It is not even strictly correct to say that
Orion is visible from the entire surface of the Earth. An
observer at the South Pole would never see Betelgeux,
whose declination is 7 degrees. From latitudes above
83 degrees (90 7) Betelgeux would never rise.These charts may be used for almost all the densely
populated regions of the southern hemisphere which lie
between 15 and 35 degrees south. The northern view is
given in the left chart, the southern in the right.Chart 1.In January, the two most brilliant stars, Sirius and
Canopus, are high up. Sirius seems appreciably the brighter
of the two (magnitude 1.5 as against 0.8), but its eminence
is due to its closeness rather than its real luminosity. It is an
A-type Main Sequence star, only 26 times as luminous as the
Sun; Canopus is an F-type supergiant, whose luminosity may
be 15,000 times that of the Sun, according to one estimate,
though both its distance and its luminosity are uncertain and
estimates vary widely. Lower down, the Southern Cross is
a prominent feature, and the brilliant pair of stars Alpha and
Beta Centauri are also found in the same area. In the north,
Capella is well above the horizon; Orion is not far from the
zenith, and if the sky is clear a few stars of Ursa Major may
be seen low over the northern horizon.
Chart 2. In March, Canopus is descending in the south-west,Chart 1
Chart 2
Chart 3
Morning
1 October at 5.30
15 October at 4.30
30 October at 3.30Evening
1 January at 11.30
15 January at 10.30
30 January at 9.30Morning
15 December at 4.30
30 December at 3.30
15 January at 2.30Evening
1 March at 11.30
15 March at 10.30
30 March at 9.30Morning
14 February at 4.30
28 February at 3.30
15 March at 2.30Evening
1 May at 11.30
15 May at 10.30
30 May at 9.30F Atl of Univ Phil'03stp 3/4/03 5:44 pm Page 216